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ashylibrarian

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3/5 (audiobook)

This is the first Fly Guy book I've read, and it was cute. It was more of a silly read, but the students really enjoy it!

2.5/5 (audiobook)

This book was silly and cute, but not my favorite. I would recommend it to someone looking for a light, amusing read.

4/5 (audiobook)

Tiffany D. Jackson creates another electric and invigorating story that infuses Brooklyn culture, hip hop music, friendship, and family all together.

"Let Me Hear a Rhyme" really caught my attention from the beginning of the story. I was interested to learn about what happened to Steph and how his friends planned to keep his music alive. Jackson wove a tale that encapsulated me as a reader and made me not want to stop listening until the end.

This is the second Tiffany D. Jackson book I have listened too, and although "Allegedly" still takes the cake, "Let Me Hear a Rhyme" was a close second.

Jackson did a great job of making her story both crazy and realistic - in that three young, high school-aged teens (Quadir, Jarrell, and Jasmine) manage to, through their own determination and perseverance, create a name for their friend (Steph) who was murdered and was never able to live his dream of producing music. The story did not feel super fictionalized, and I really appreciate that aspect because it makes a contemporary story more

The biggest thing I did not like about the audiobook was the amount of shifting in narrator voice. I know that each chapter was from a different character's perspective, and they probably wanted to make it personal/realistic by giving them each their own voice, but all of the changing narration took something out of the story for me, though I can't quite pinpoint what.

Putting that aside, though, this book made for a really good listen!

2.5/5 (audiobook)

I have to say that I think Karin Slaughter books have become my guilty pleasure reads. I wanted to read one of her series to see how she connects stories together, and I am enjoying learning about the events that happen in Grant County.

There are some parts of the book that feel totally predictable while others did hold suspense until near the end, but either way, I was once again drawn into Slaughter's imaginative mystery thriller.

I always get slightly turned away by Slaughter's deep use of details at certain points within her novels because they paint some of the clearest images in my mind of what is happening, but at the same time, I feel that is what really helps make her writing stand out.

Though Slaughter's books may not be high-rating books for me, I always seem to find myself going back to them. I am currently working my way through the Grant County series and hope they are all equally enjoyable.

2.5/5 (audiobook)

Karin Slaughter managed to suck me in again with this warped tale telling the story of child abuse, neglect, child pornography, suicide, murder, and so much more.

Slaughter delicately integrated the first Grant County novel, Blindsighted, throughout this story without overwhelming the reading with information.

As I get deeper into this series, as I expected when I saw how long the series is, I feel like a lot of what is happening in Grant is dramatic, and for being what is described as such a small county, and it seems unlikely that all of this would happen.

But, with that being said, Slaughter's books still topic my guilty pleasure reading list.

3/5 (audiobook)

I really enjoyed this one! I loved the fact that it provided background on Jeffery's and Sara's relationship, and the major plot point was something different and exciting and intense. This book felt a lot different from the rest of the series because it not only provides a plotline that is suspenseful, but it also gives ample background knowledge on two of the main characters.

This was a nice change of pace for me because I was worried the series was going to start drying up, being pretty long and all.

I am sad that Hoopla, through my library, does not carry the rest of this series (Grant County), so if you know where I could possibly rent them, let me know in the comments! Thanks!

2/5 (audiobook)

Out of the books I have read so far in this series (Grant County), this one is probably my least favorite. It seemed like a lot of what happened in this book was forced, and the plot just felt like it was dragging a bit for me.

I did enjoy being introduced to Ethan. He brings a new twist to the story that I think helped to pace the book toward the middle/end. And the ending with Richard was BOOM. I was not expecting that to happen at all, so it was nice to get a suspended surprise.

I still enjoyed this book, though, because, like every review I post about Karin Slaughter, I love her books and they are totally my guilty pleasure reads.

3/5 (audiobook)

This was a nice, short mystery listen. I thought the story was engaging, but listening to it as an audiobook, I feel, took a little bit away from it. It almost felt too short, and I think this would have been different if I were reading a physical format.

Either way, it filled the space for me to listen to something while folding and putting away laundry!

2.5/5 (audiobook)

Okay, so, I was really intrigued by the description of this book, and being a word-lover myself, I thought the concept was really compelling! Unfortunately, this book kind of fell short for me.

We are introduced to a cast of characters that have vastly different views on language and how it should be used. Most of the people in this world are limited to a list of 700 words (soon expected to be cut to 500). There is mystery and corruption and revenge. These are all things I was extremely interested to learn more about.

I had a hard time getting into this audiobook. I found myself spacing out and not really caring to go back to see if I missed anything important. Usually, I will rewind an audiobook if I feel like I have not retained the information, or if I don't fully feel like I know what is going on, but for some reason, I did not feel that need for this book. This is the second middle-grade story I have read in a long time, so that may have something to do with it. But, overall, it just left me feeling like I do not have a lot to say about it because nothing seemed to stick with me.

There were good things I liked about this book. I enjoyed the main characters. Letta was curious and engaged in what was happening. Marlo was brave and willing to put his life on the line for the greater good.

I also really enjoyed the overarching purpose of the novel. I read a review the said this book was like Fahrenheit 451 meets The Giver, which to me sounds totally awesome. And at some points, I can see where this connection could be made. I was surprised and fascinated by the use of the biblical story of Noah's Ark that played throughout the book. I honestly went into this not knowing a whole lot about the story, other than what I have heard on Booktube. As the story unveiled, it became clear that this post-apocalyptic world was created around the story of Noah's Ark - the flood that took out the population, Noah, cleansing the people. Pretty cleaver.

I found the beginning of the story to be kind of slow. There did not seem to be a lot of progress made, and some scenes just seemed to drag on. Once the plot introduced Noah and the Gavers (spelling??) cruelty and the secrets they were hiding, things did start to pick up. But I guess my overall impression was underwhelmed.

2.5/5 (audiobook)

The Right Swipe was my last listen of the month. It was a book that is definitely outside of my comfort zone, but I have been looking to expand my reading palette. I am not one to read romance novels, especially adult romance novels. But I have been seeing so many of my Bookstagram friends reading fun romantic comedies, so I thought I would give it a try!

I am not 100% mad that I read this, but it is certainly not my favorite. From the beginning, I felt like the plot line was going to be a little corny, being about the founders of dating apps. I still wanted to give this story the benefit of the doubt, though.

I was actually pretty impressed with the storyline overall. I enjoyed Rhiannon’s character for her determination, professionalism, and independence. She has a presence about her that means business. I am always for strong female leads. Partnered with Katrina, a seemingly shy, anxious, and introverted character, the duo made for a lust-worthy friendship.

I was taken aback by the steamy nature of the romance (though I really should not have been, like, lets be real girl, the Goodreads description says “sizzling new series”). There is so much competition, romance, and growth creating a complex, yet not fully developed story. I say this because I feel like the characters grew exponentially, yet the story was pretty basic and classic fictional romance.

It seemed like every time Rhi and Samson got together, I was like “yikes, am I blushing over an audiobook?” This portion of the book really pushed my typical reading comfort zone. I guess this is something that I am going to have to get used to if I want to read more fictional romance novels…

I do have to say, though, that the growing connection between Rhi and Samson and their constantly changing relationship, I was always drawn back. Rhiannon was relatable in her frustration and anger towards Samson initially, after being ghosted and left for months. Then all of a sudden, he pops back up with an excuse as to why he disappeared. They grew closer, but after a professional development and advancement opportunity, Rhiannon mistrusts Samson (albeit for a fairly valid reason) that crumbles any relationship they built.

This part felt slightly overexaggerated. She was not even willing to hear him out, and then she dropped all contact with him for weeks. But all that aside, I thought the ending was cute, and I feel like it showed the strongest development in the characters – both Rhiannon and Samson willing to try a serious, long-term relationship.

Overall, I would recommend this book to anyone looking for a saucy, fun, romantic read!